Definition of Soil

1.v. t. To feed, as cattle or horses, in the barn or an inclosure, with fresh grass or green food cut for them, instead of sending them out to pasture; hence (such food having the effect of purging them), to purge by feeding on green food; as, to soil a horse.

2.n. The upper stratum of the earth; the mold, or that compound substance which furnishes nutriment to plants, or which is particularly adapted to support and nourish them.

3.v. t. To enrich with soil or muck; to manure.

4.n. A marshy or miry place to which a hunted boar resorts for refuge; hence, a wet place, stream, or tract of water, sought for by other game, as deer.

5.v. t. To make dirty or unclean on the surface; to foul; to dirty; to defile; as, to soil a garment with dust.

Definition of Soil

1. Noun. A mixture of sand and organic material, used to support plant growth. ¹

2. Noun. The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants. ¹

3. Noun. The unconsolidated mineral or organic matter on the surface of the earth that has been subjected to and shows effects of genetic and environmental factors of: climate (including water and temperature effects), and macro- and microorganisms, conditioned by relief, acting on parent material over a period of time. A product-soil differs from the material from which it is derived in many physical, chemical, biological, and morphological properties and characteristics. ¹